Dream Drop Distance, Northern Mountains
by Cyberdrew
Summary: So there's this thing going around called "Frozen"? I guess its a big deal of some sort. Just an extra world to explore for Sora and Riku's test of the "Sleeping Worlds." Set towards the end of Kingdom Hearts DDD, no spoilers.
1. Chapter 1

**_Sigh… So I had to get this out of my system. The story will be taking place as if it was involved the most recent Kingdom Hearts game, "Dream Drop Distance." I'll be trying to keep this as close to the game's storyline as possible, while throwing around some fun and adventure here and there. Don't like it, well…can't help you. _**

**_((()))_**

Riku's trip didn't go as well as the other "Dives" have. Instead of ending up on the sidewalk of some town square, he ended up in the middle of the woods.

Forty feet in the air.

In what must have been the dead of night.

Riku hit a tree that had been bent over like a waiting trap. In response, the tree flung Riku as he shouted in surprise across the air into the side of a small hill.

He face-planted into a bed of soft snow, but that didn't exactly make him feel any better. He slowly got up, groaning about his pain. He looked around and looked down at his snow-silhouette.

"Snow," he observed, his mind trying to catch up to his eyes, "All the trees are bent. A blizzard, maybe?"

He looked up at the sky, there wasn't a cloud to be seen.

He felt the answer shivering up his back. And he could smell darkness somewhere nearby.

"Magic," he said, "Some 'one' did this, not some 'thing'."

He turned to see a trail of smoke rising above the trees in the moonlight.

"Maybe whoever started up that fire could tell me what's going on."

(One transition fighting scene later)

Riku walked up to the wooden shed and looked up at the sign that seemed covered in snow. He tapped the sign to knock the snow off.

"Wandering Oaken's Trading Post," he read aloud. He wondered if they had any potions here.

A little more snow fell off of an extra part of the sign.

"And...Sauna," Riku read, slightly confused. He decided not to put too much thought into it and stepped inside.

"Yoo-hoo."

Riku looked over above the shelves and saw the man across the counter. He must have been the merchant, though his clothes, voice, and manner were strange to him. Not that it bothered Riku that much, he'd seen stranger, after all.

"Big summer blow-out," the merchant, Oaken, Riku had guessed, further stated.

"Oh," Riku said, "This is supposed to be summer?"

Oaken's bright and hopeful face saddened. "I'm afraid so. This blizzard came out of nowhere the other day. I'm not sure what's going on."

Riku grunted. So the snow was unnatural, could this have been the work of some dark witch? It seemed like the caliber of Maleficent and others. Though there doesn't seem to be any reasoning for it yet.

"Do you have any elixirs, by chance?" Riku asked.

Oaken smiled and pulled a couple of bottles of the healing magic on the counter.

Before Riku could pull out his money, the door opened up again, and he turned to look.

A young woman waddled in in what looked like a frozen dress, muttering the word "cold" over and over again.

When she entered, Oaken gave the same greeting.

"Yoo-hoo, big summer blow-out! We've got half off of swimming suits, clogs, and a sun balm of my own invention, yah?"

The woman looked perplexed but put on a polite smile.

"Oh, great," she said, "For now, uh, how about some boots, winter boots, a-and dresses?"

"That would be in our vwinter department," Oaken smiled happily, indicating a corner with almost nothing in it aside from what the woman needed.

The woman grabbed her supplies and tried to talk casually.

"So I was wondering," she asked, "Has a young woman, I don't know, the Queen, perhaps, huh, come through here recently?"

She looked between Riku and the older man. Riku shook his head.

"Only one crazy enough to be out in the snow now is you, dear. And this fellow here."

The door opened again, ringing the bell. A man covered head-to-toe in snow and ice stomped on the mat and looked to the three of them.

"You two and this fellow," Oaken corrected, "Yoo-hoo! Big summer blow-out!"

The man walked towards them and loomed over the woman. Riku tensed up. If he was here to cause trouble...

"Carrots," the mountain man said. "Behind you."

The lady looked behind her, and moved out of the way.

"Oh," she said, nervously, "Sorry."

While the mountain man talked to the merchant, Riku pulled out some money and counted it, making sure he had enough. He then placed it on the counter for the elixirs.

"Wait," the woman said, "The north mountain?"

Riku looked to see what the new commotion was about, the woman was now drilling the man with questions.

"...did it seem magical?" The woman asked.

The man pulled his scarf down so Riku could see his face for the first time.

"Yes!" He answered, "Now back up, while I deal with this crook here."

What happened next scared Riku a little more than it should have, considering all he had previously been through. Oaken rose from his seated position, and Riku began to question which one was the mountain man in this scenario.

The short of it was that the ice man got thrown out of the store. Riku observed the woman for her remaining time in the store. There was a certain kind of...warmth about her. It was like she was a shining light in the darkness. Almost like when he met the Princesses of Heart. Though there was darkness there, when you looked for it, it seemed she tried especially hard to hide it, or banish it. He followed her to the barn where they both heard music.

"Excuse me," Riku said.

The woman jumped, and turned around. "I didn't do-!"

She stopped when she saw him. "Oh, it's just you."

Riku smiled a little bit. "Sorry about that," he said, "I'm Riku."

The woman smiled back a little. "I'm Princess Anna, of Arendelle. Did you need something?"

"You're planning on going to the North Mountain, aren't you?" Riku accused.

Anna straightened up and stood her ground.

"Yeah, so?"

"Lot of heartl-...monsters running around."

"Well..."

"I would like to help you, if I can. Monsters are familiar territory with me."

"Really?" Anna said, surprised. "Do you know how to get up the north mountain then?"

Riku looked away and folded his arms.

"Maybe it wouldn't hurt to have a guide," Riku resolved after a minute.

Anna laughed and put her hand up.

"Wait here," she said.

She went over to the barn with the bag slung over her shoulder. A minute or so later, she came back and breathed a sigh of relief. Then she noticed Riku and straightened up.

"A Princess always has a plan."

Riku chuckled. She reminded him of Sora in a way.


	2. Chapter 2

Sora wandered through the halls, astounded by the enormity of it all. He felt like he was back at Disney castle, and he half expected to hear Donald and Goofy's voices again.

He missed them, a lot, but he knew the sooner that this "Master Test" was done, the sooner he'd see them, as well as Riku and Kairi again.

He had been so caught up in his own thoughts, he hadn't realized that he passed someone.

"Excuse me."

Sora spun around to the woman before him. She had her pure white hair in a braid around her head, with bright blue eyes that seemed too sharp for words. She had a cloak flowing behind her along with her dress. She examined him thoroughly.

"The guards have just opened up the gates," the lady said, "No one is supposed to be in the castle just yet."

"Oh, sorry," Sora answered, "I didn't know. I just kind of wandered in here."

The woman sighed, "Well, I suppose it doesn't matter anymore. What's your name? Where are you from?"

"I'm Sora," he said proudly, "And I'm from the Destiny Islands."

"Oh, the Southern Isles," the lady responded, "I thought they'd be coming today. Are you a Prince?"

"No," Sora said sheepishly, "I'm just a traveler. What's your name?"

She smiled warmly, "Goodness, you really are lost, aren't you? I'm Princess Elsa, and today is my Coronation. I...I'm going to be a Queen today."

"Whoa! A Queen?" Sora exclaimed, "You must be super excited!"

She giggled, but looked away sadly.

"Actually," she said, "I'm petrified. There are so many things that can go wrong, and with that creature on the loose, I..."

"Wait," Sora said, "Creature?"

"Yes. There's a monster that's been terrorizing small villages that neighbor Arendelle. And our best trackers have claimed that it's making its way here. It's almost like it's...hunting someone."

Sora grinned from ear to ear.

"Your majesty," he said, striking a pose, "Is today ever your lucky day!"

"What? You would face this monster? By yourself?"

"I've gotten pretty good at it," Sora bragged. "Taking down monsters is my specialty!"

The soon to be Queen looked surprised, "Y-you are familiar with these creatures?"

"Yes ma'am. They tend to flock towards the darkness in people's hearts."

"...I see."

The Queen thought for a minute, then nodded.

"Alright," she straightened her shoulders, "I hereby dub you an honorary guard of Arendelle, charged with defending the kingdom from giant monsters. Sir Sora, do you accept?"

Sora bowed, "yes ma'am!"

"And don't call me 'ma'am'. I'm a Queen, not a grandmother."

The comment took Sora by surprise. He laughed, and Elsa joined him in her own giggling fit.

After a minute, Elsa had remembered something important.

"Oh, one more thing," Elsa requested, "My sister, Anna, is undoubtedly enjoying the company of the people in the courtyard and the marketplace. If you happen to see her, please explain who you are and tell her to come back to the castle where it's safer."

Sora nodded. "You can count on me, your majesty!"

With that, he ran off towards an exit, and Elsa breathed a little easier.


	3. Chapter 3

Sora made it through the courtyard and passed the walls and bridge to the marketplace. There, she saw a redheaded girl, with her hair in a braid similar to Elsa's, if not exactly the same. She was running towards him, though Sora couldn't make out her expression.

Sora raised his hand to hail her and greeted her with a warm smile.

"Princess Anna?" Sora guessed.

She didn't slow down, and Sora saw the panic in her eyes. "Help! Guards! Monsters at the port! There are monsters at port!"

Sora summoned his keyblade.

"I got this!" He yelled, and rushed to battle.

There, Sora saw what must have been twenty Nightmares. Two elephants, six bats and a bunch of sheep and salamanders. They were all cornering a man in a white suit with red hair that grabbed the sides of his face.

"Hey!" Sora said, "Over here!"

The nightmares turned their attention to him and swarmed after him. All but one Komory Bat. It swooped in after the man, but was caught in the face with a small shovel. Sora only glanced, but he saw Princess Anna leading the man away from the fight.

Now Sora had some room to work.

(One fighting scene later)

Anna approached Sora after the coast was clear, she had the other man by the arm.

"Thank you so much," Anna greeted, "I wasn't sure I could've handled all those by myself."

"You have my gratitude," the man bowed slightly, "I am Prince Hans, of the Southern Isles, and you are...?"

"Sora. Sora of, uh," he thought for a moment, "no place in particular."

Anna and Hans chuckled a little. Sora wasn't sure why, but he didn't really feel like sharing too much with this guy. Though he like Anna just fine.

"Oh," Sora remembered, "Princess Anna, Queen Elsa sent me to find you and send you back to the castle if things ever got too hairy."

Anna stared at him, apparently stunned by the message.

"My...sister sent you?"

Sora tilted his head. "Uh, yeah, why?"

Anna took a minute before answering, "I haven't seen my sister since I was a little girl. She just…spends all her time on studying and planning, I guess."

"Oh, well..." Sora wasn't sure what to do or say in this situation. "She wanted to make sure you were safe. She's in there now. You can go say hi."

Anna suddenly snapped to attention, like she just remembered something important.

"The bells," she said, "they rang almost an hour ago! We're late! I'm late!"

She ran off towards the castle, and Hans bowed again to Sora.

"Hopefully," he said, "We will meet again, and I can repay you for saving my life."

"Yeah, uh, no problem." Sora responded.

Hans headed off, and Sora was left to his own devices.

...

Later that night Sora sat down and yawned, stretching his arms to the sky.

He had been patrolling the entire afternoon, searching every high and low of Arendelle. Of course he did run into a few crops of dream eaters, but nothing too serious or big like Elsa had described.

Sora looked back at the castle. It was night now, and by the looks of things, the coronation was over and the after-party had started.

"Well," Sora said out loud, "I guess that Monster won't come by tonight. Maybe I won't have to fight it this time."

He looked over his shoulder and saw a shadow looming over him. He had no time to react when the Dream Eater knocked him through the air. He hit his head on the ground, but still found enough strength to summon his keyblade and get back on his feet.

"Right," he said bitterly, facing the monster. "Like clockwork."

He lunged and swung at the frozen beast. It was hollow, its skin looking like frozen glass. Its arms floated separately from the hovering torso. Its flat head seemed tucked away, only exposing its beady yellow eyes. Laces of ice spread out from its back, passing through each other like as web of still, hollow wings.

Sora managed to knock his weapon into it several times, along with some well timed spells for good measure.

Soon, it backed off and growled at him. It disappeared using a doorway of darkness, leaving no trace.

"Maybe I should check on Elsa," He said aloud after a minute. "At least to report what happened."

He took a second to catch his breath and then jogged towards the castle.

The ballroom was a quite a sight, people just talking, laughing, and dancing everywhere. The smell of roasted foods and chocolate desserts hovered in the air. It was official, Sora just had to bring Kairi to one of these balls.

He spotted the Queen in the crowd and managed to get her attention.

"Miss Elsa!" He greeted excitedly.

Elsa turned and smiled, though there was a scared look in her eyes.

"Sora," she greeted, "How-how goes your day?"

"Great! Well...I mean, I haven't caught it yet, but...?"

"You haven't caught him?" Elsa inquired.

"Well, no ma'am."

Elsa sighed, but then smiled down to him.

"You're doing your best," she reassured. "I certainly wouldn't mind trading places with you. Being a guard is nothing compared to-"

"Elsa!" Another voice interrupted.

It was a particularly giddy Anna pulling Hans through the crowd. Before Sora could say anything else, Elsa seemed focused on the apparently disturbing news.

"Marriage?" Queen Elsa stammered.

Sora's ears seemed to be burning. Anna marrying Hans? Normally, he'd applaud for anyone's marriage. He helped Aladdin and Jasmine, Mulan and Shang, he even helped Jack find heart in Sally. This situation just felt... different.

Sora blinked and, for some reason, Elsa and Anna were angry with each other.

"You asked for my blessing, but my answer is no."

"My Queen," Hans protested, "If I may-"

"No, you may not," Elsa answered, then turned to a guard nearby, "Close the gates, the party is over."

"Elsa, wait," Anna grabbed for her sister's glove and pulled it off.

Sora felt... funny. There was a pain in his head and heart felt familiar. He tried to make sense of it as the sisters argued.

"I said ENOUGH!"

Then he saw it. Ice shards blasting up from the ground and surprising everyone in the room.

"Elsa?" Anna uttered in disbelief.

The Queen ran. Anna then ran after her, quickly followed by Sora.

Unfortunately, Sora let his guard down when exiting the castle. He had gained speed and passed Anna in the hallway, and then burst through the doors outside.

"Elsa! Stop right there!" He begged.

"Please, just stay away from me! Stay away!"

Sora didn't think that she would attack him, but the pain he felt afterwards told him otherwise. While the blast didn't hit him directly, it tossed him to the side and he ended up hitting an already sore spot on his head to the stone floors; effectively rendering him unconscious.

Eventually, he woke up, and there was a cold chill in the air. He grunted, pushing himself off the ground and looked around, the people were gone, and the square was empty.

He managed drink a potion and get back on his feet. He felt a little better, but the snowy air came with a sense of dread.

"Snow?" Sora wondered. He was sweating earlier this morning. Now it was snowing?

"The Queen," he remembered.

"Yes, the Queen of Snow and Ice," said a familiar and menacing voice.

Sora sprang up and faced the young man.

"Remind you of anyone?" He said, "A Nobody Scientist maybe?"

"What?" Sora asked, now more confused than angry.

"Ah," he said, "I forgot that those memories are lost to you. So insignificant that you simply dropped them. I suppose that poor girl didn't mean anything to you either. What will she say, I wonder?"

Sora thought hard. What he was talking about, did it belong to that /other/ side of him? One of Roxas' memories?

"Namine," Sora concluded, "you're talking about Namine."

The young man shook his head. "You say her name, yet it means nothing to you. Now you face another pretender. A wolf in sheep's clothing..."

"That's enough!" Sora yelled, "Tell me who you are!"

The young man smiled and disappeared in a door to darkness.

Sora was so angry he could spit. He took a minute to clear his head.

"I should..." He told himself slowly, trying to calm back down, "Find Anna. Elsa cares for Anna. She'll want to know if she's okay."

He dismissed his keyblade for the moment and ran back to the town square.


	4. Chapter 4

Riku rested as much as he could. The constant jostling of the sled shook him back awake as it made its way up the mountain top. Kristoff and Anna took up the two seats in the front. They were just talking and getting to know each other. Riku wasn't even there.

In Riku's travels, he's discovered one thing: the worlds are strange. Stranger than fiction. They were like stories in a book, and outsiders like him and Sora would only be allowed to interfere so much. Each world had its own heroes and villains doing their own business, he and Sora were just the support. The backup.

Riku caught wind of the couple's conversation.

"-Wait," interrupted Kristoff, "You mean to tell me, you were going to marry someone you just met that day?"

"Yes," Anna said, irritably, "its true love."

"Oh yeah?" The man said smugly, then proceeded to drill Anna with seemingly random questions. She answered the best she could, and with as much enthusiasm as she could muster, but Riku could tell that they may not have been entirely accurate answers.

Eventually, Anna huffed. "Look, it doesn't matter, its true love!"

"Doesn't sound like true love."

"It does feel a bit rushed," Riku gently commented.

Anna scoffed, "What? Are you two supposed to be some kind of _Love Experts_?"

Riku stayed quiet, but then heard something. Their guide eventually heard it too.

"No...But I have friends who are," he started looking around.

"You have friends that are love experts," Anna said skeptically, "I'm not buying it."

"Be quiet," Kristoff ordered, slowing the sleigh to a stop.

"No no," Anna continued, "I'd like to meet these-"

"Anna," Riku interrupted, "Look."

The three of them studied their surroundings. Maybe Anna and Kristoff thought it was something else, wolves perhaps, but Riku knew better.

"Dream Eaters," he said under his breath.

"What was that?" Anna exclaimed, pointing at a shadow and trying to raise her lantern to expose it.

"Kristoff," Riku said over his shoulder. He summoned his keyblade. "Take Anna up the mountain, I'll act as a distraction to these things, I'll meet you at the top."

"But what about-" Anna didn't get the chance to voice her concern. As a pack of the monsters emerged from the shadows of the trees.

"Go!" Riku jumped off the sleigh and performed a _Dark Firaga_ spell, completely obliterating one of his bigger opponents, and effectively grabbing the attention of the rest of them.

"Riku!" Anna called back as the sleigh was pulled forward.

Two of the Dream Eaters abandoned their comrades and chased them. Riku will have to let them go if he wanted to keep the rest of the pack busy.

(One epic fight scene later, Riku continues on)

Riku soon made his way up the mountain, slaying the stray Dream Eaters as he went. He admittedly hasn't gotten used to this, endlessly traveling alone. He missed his friends, Sora and Kairi.

His Dream Eaters appeared next him, dancing and playing in the snow as they went along.

Well, he wasn't completely alone right now, he thought.

He turned a corner and ran into the snow giant.

It had stunned Riku so much that it took him a minute to realize that it was walking with hostages.

"**Go away**!" It lumbered, tossing Anna and Kristoff to the edge of a cliff.

Riku looked down and saw another, much smaller snowman, shouting at the bigger one.

He took off after the crowd.

"Hey!" He shouted.

The snow giant turned and roared at him, and Riku couldn't help but think that he made a horrible mistake.

He engaged the monster, slashing at its legs and keeping its attention. At the corner of his eye, Kristoff was pulling rope out and getting ready to lower himself and Anna down the side of the cliff.

Was Anna's hair...white?

_Focus_.

The giant stepped back, kicking back some of the snow off the cliff. Suddenly Riku heard Anna and Kristoff's voices screaming as they fell.

"No!"

He unleashed his power by merging with one of his Dream Eaters, and quickly finished the battle.

Though the snowman was far from destroyed, it stumbled back, groaning. Riku couldn't tell if it was from pain or if it felt sad that it lost. The giant fell to one side, and curled up to sleep.

Riku ran to the edge, searching for his friends

He then closed his eyes and listened intently with his other senses. When a heart is destroyed, or consumed, it doesn't do it silently. There was an indescribable noise that is made, like a final cry for help before being released.

He stood there for a few minutes that felt like hours. All he could hear was the wind, and another presence walking up to stand next to him.

"Don't ask me how," the thing said, "but I think they're okay."

Riku opened his eyes and turned to the secondary snowman.

"It's just this feeling," it said, placing one of its wooden stick arms over its chest. "I just know...that they'll be fine."

Riku remembered that the sleeping worlds are constantly rewinding and replaying the major events that occur there. Who's to say how many times Kristoff and Anna fell down this particular cliff and lived? This snowman must have a simple enough heart and mind to detect this, on a certain level.

"I feel it two," Riku said, placing his hand over his heart. "They'll be fine. For now though..."

He turned and saw the magnificent ice castle in the distance.

"There is darkness at work here," he stated, "I need to get rid of it, if this world is to wake up intact."

He turned to the snowman, "I'm sorry, I don't think we've met."

The snowman smiled with glee, throwing his hands up. Riku got on one knee in front of him.

"I'm Olaf!" He exclaimed, "And I like warm hugs!"

"Oh, okay. I'm Riku, it's nice-"

Olaf assaulted him with a hug around his neck.

"...It's nice to meet you," he patted the snowman's back.

Olaf stepped back and Riku stood back up.

"So, this Queen Elsa," Riku ventured, "She's in there?"

"Yup!" Olaf answered, "She's the one who built me!"

Riku smiled a little. "Well, if that's true, she can't be all bad. C'mon, let's go."

"Oh, well..." Olaf shuffled his feet.

"What's the matter?" Riku asked.

"I think...I think I need to go with them," he looked over to the cliff.

Riku weighed the possibility of the snowman surviving the fall. Was he supposed to go down with them?

"Okay, Olaf," Riku nodded, "Just be careful."

He smiled wide and nodded, and then threw himself off the edge, shouting "Hang in there guys! Incoming snow-bomb!"

Riku chuckled and turned to the ice palace. "Must be nice to have back up."

…

Riku walked through the castle, cautiously trying not to slip on the floors. He realized that the floor was completely flat, it had ridges in the ice, so that anyone here could walk easily.

"One person did this?" He said in wonder.

He climbed the stairs and then spotted a figure hunched over, and sobbing.

"Hello?" Riku said hesitantly.

The woman spun around in a flash. She had a sparkling blue dress and her white hair was in a braid over her shoulder. The woman looked panicked, and yet, familiar.

"You...look a bit like Anna," Riku noted.

The woman looked startled. "You know my sister?" She said.

"You must be the Queen. I'm Riku. I was helping Anna get up the mountain," he answered, "She was really worried about you. What happened?"

Elsa held her arms and turned away from him.

"Have you ever had to... do something horrible, something that kills you to do, but it's for the better? To protect the people you loved?"

Riku felt a sense of déjà-vu. The woman had just described the majority of his teenage life.

"Yes," he said, "I had to sacrifice a lot for the people I cared about. Until one day, it turned me into someone I wasn't. It was unnecessary. I learned to have more trust in my friends, and in myself."

Elsa slowly turned towards him. "It's the trust I can't afford; the trust in myself."

Riku nodded, "That's something I had to learn the hard way. Just know that, the longer you stay away from them, the more hurt you're causing. Sometimes, people like us need to be bold."

Elsa didn't answer.

"That's just my advice," Riku then said, "I'll go find Anna for you, make sure she's okay."

"Riku..." She said as he left. "Thank you."

He exited the palace and went outside to where he fought the snow monster. He was still curled up in a ball of snow. Riku was tired, and he used one his elixirs in the fight. He didn't feel like trying his luck a second time.

He went over to the edge of the cliff, and jumped off after the others.


	5. Chapter 5

Sora ran into Prince Hans again, he and a few other guards from the castle were handing out blankets and inviting people into the castle.

He spotted Sora immediately.

"Oh, Sora," he said, "I'm sorry about before, I had been so busy with-"

"That's alright," he waved it off like it was nothing. His head was still fuzzy. "Where's Anna, and the Queen?"

He sighed. "Queen Elsa has fled to the North Mountain. Princess Anna followed her." He looked in the direction of the mountain. "It's been too long," he added. "We need to send a search party."

Sora nodded in agreement, that's probably the most sensible thing to do. "I'll help," he volunteered, "I'm a good fighter, I can get your party up the mountain."

"Thank you," he said, "I'll accompany you."

Sora took a moment to replenish his strength. Soon, the party of four trekked the mountain with somewhat limited resistance. The Nightmares seemed to be playing with Sora, not the way his Dream Eaters played around, they taunted him. The way they fought and flittered around seemed to say "_It's hopeless to keep going. Why even bother_?"

Soon, Sora turned a corner, and the impossible castle was there in its shimmering glory. The ice seemed to be glowing different shades of blue, white, and purple.

"That must be it," Hans voiced behind him.

As soon as the words left his mouth, snow seemed to erupt from Sora's right, and a lumbering giant knocked Sora senseless. He skidded through the snow, creating a streaking crater in the snow until he hit a tree. Hans shouted orders and charged the lumbering ice giant. Sora struggled to stand.

"Could use a potion, or something," he muttered bitterly.

He looked up to see the Prince valiantly fighting the snow monster. Sora twirled his keyblade and charged forward. He jumped into the air and cast one of his more powerful spells.

"_Triple Firaga!_"

The fireballs trailed forward and burst into the monster's side, causing it to fall over the edge of the cliff. Sora ran over to the edge, checking for any sign it survived. After a moment of silence, Sora let out a deep breath.

"Did...did elsa make that?" he wondered out loud. "If she made that, couldn't she have also made that monster earlier?"

Hans approached him, concern masking his face.

"Stay out here," Sora said, "I'll talk to Elsa, try to talk her down."

Hans nodded, "I'll be right behind you if you need anything."

Sora ran up the stairs and tried to prepare himself for what's coming. He reached the big room and saw the Queen watching him and backing away slowly.

She held her hands out at him. "Please..." she begged.

"You summoned that monster!" he accused her, "You sent me on that wild goose chase, and I got blind-sided!"

"No..."

"I'm bringing you in!" He announced, and charged.

Keyblades and magic do a whole lot of damage, but it almost never shows, not physically. Magical items and such do damage on the same level to people, damaging the energies of the heart. That's why Nobodies fade, after losing a fight. They don't have any hearts, so they can't replenish the energy they've lost quickly enough to survive the fight.

Elsa cried out in pain and lashed out with her power. She struck the ground, and slammed Sora with a wall of ice. When Sora tried to charge again, ice shards shot out and stabbed his clothes into the wall. Sora's arm was free though, and he swung his keyblade to break free of the ice.

"_Balloonra_!" he cast, and a cluster of colorful balls appeared in front of Sora. He blitzed it, and the balloons scattered, bouncing off the walls all around Sora and Elsa.

Elsa looked around, confused.

"What?" she said, astounded.

Soon, one by one, the balloons bounced towards the Snow Queen and hit her with their water magic.

"Ah!" she cried out, both in shock and in pain.

She wavered, and slipped on her heels, falling onto the ground and passing out.

Hans appeared in the doorway.

"Queen Elsa!" he exclaimed, and ran over to her side.

Sora looked around. "Where's Anna?"

Hans looked around. "One problem at a time. We need to get Elsa back to the castle."

Sora looked back the way they came.

"I think…I'll go back and look for Anna. Maybe she's close by."

"I should be able to get the Queen back safely," he said, "Go."


	6. Chapter 6

Sora didn't even make it ten feet out the door before he was attacked again. The giant Dream Eater, the Frost Golem had returned.

It slammed its fists into the ground, causing the whole mountain to shake.

Hans came stumbling out with his men while carrying Queen Elsa. Hans looked at the monster, seemingly in shock.

"It must have returned for her!" He announced. "Retreat to the castle!"

"I'll hold it off!" Sora shouted, and charged the creature.

It was determined, Sora could admit that. It had punched, and charged, and thrown Sora around the forest so much that he could hardly tell which way was up anymore. He was cold, and tired, and everything was spinning. He couldn't even tell if Hans had gotten away.

"A potion," he told himself, "I need a..."

He fumbled with his back pocket until he brought out the vial of healing magic, he tried to uncork it, but the Golem's attack came too soon, knocking him into a tree.

His vision was blurred, he couldn't really focus on anything. The Frost Golem started howling to the sky, almost like laughter.

_"This is the legendary keyblade wielder?" _Sora imagined it saying, "_Ha! He can barely stand up to my power!"_

_This is it_, Sora thought, _This is where I get beaten, and lose my heart to darkness. _

_Again_.

Suddenly there was a white figure, short and huffing in skipping breaths. It held a familiar green bottle out to Sora, which he thankfully drank. His vision cleared, and the blow to the back of his head softened, but it didn't disappear completely.

"Are you okay?" said the strange figure. The white blur became a snowman, and it looked at Sora with worry.

"Better," Sora said, "Thanks."

"I'm Olaf!" he exclaimed excitedly, clearly happy to meet someone new.

"I'm Sora," the young hero shook his hand.

The snowman then added, "I like warm hugs!"

Then the Frost Golem roared in disapproval, and Sora readied himself again.

"Later," he promised the snowman, "Go help the Queen!"

Olaf saluted like a soldier, and then lunged forward, sliding down the hill like a penguin.

Sora took a minute and drank some Ether. He was feeling much better now. He charged the creature and unleashed every spell in his arsenal, then he used the special abilities of his combined Dream Eaters to finish it off.

It groaned in pain, and was starting to sink in the air. It tried back up away from Sora.

"Oh no you don't!" Sora hollered, charging it one last time. He threw his keyblade at it, but it was too late, the monster has disappeared in a wave of darkness.

"AHHHHHHH!" Sora screamed in frustration. One time, he heard his mother fussing at a group of men for using "foul language" around children. Sora didn't hear any of these words himself, but they all seemed somewhat appropriate at this exact moment.

He let out a deep sigh and forced himself to focus on something else. Anything else would do.

"Prince Hans. And Queen Elsa," he suddenly remembered. He turned around to see the castle was really close by. That Dream Eater had knocked him up, down, and sideways down the entire mountain!

He reequipped the items and recounted his spells. The monster has not completely retreated, he could feel it close by, watching. It would reappear, and next time, he would be ready for it.

He took off towards the castle, ready to help save the day the best way he could.

He found Prince Hans in a parlor room of sorts, with a few nobles and house maids around him. He looked like he had just received the worst news ever.

"Hans?" Sora questioned, "What happened? Where's the Queen?"

Hans took a shaky breath. "The Queen…isn't cooperating. And Anna…" he gulped, "her heart was frozen by her sister. She…didn't make it."

The news stunned him. In all his travels, there wasn't a problem he couldn't solve. Now this…

"I…I don't believe that," Sora waved it off. "I'll go see her, maybe there's something I can-"

Just then the castle rumbled. Sora and the Prince dashed to the dungeons and found that the whole cell was obliterated, exposing it to the newly formed blizzard outside.

"Find her!" Hans ordered.

Sora obeyed without question and ran headlong into the Blizzard.


	7. Chapter 7

Sora slashed through the waves of Dream Eaters that seemed to appear randomly within the blizzard. Eventually he spotted a shape in the distance who looked as lost as he was. He soon recognized Queen Elsa.

"Elsa!" He called out to her, the wind now pushing him more harshly than ever.

The woman turned around, putting her hands up to warn him away.

"Just...take care of my sister," she pleaded.

"Elsa..." Sora said hesitantly. He didn't have to finish, as Hans came into view, also appearing from nowhere.

"Your sister?" He said in an outrage, "She returned from the mountain, weak and cold! She said you froze her heart!"

Sora tried to interrupt, though he wasn't sure why. Nothing felt _right_ anymore.

"I did what I could, but it was too late!" Hans shouted over the winds, "Your sister is dead!"

The look on Elsa's face pulled at Sora's heart. The news devastated him as much as it did her. She stumbled, but her knees buckled, and as she fell to her hands and knees, the storm stopped suddenly. The flakes in the air were frozen in place.

Hans drew a sword and approached the Ice Queen.

"Wait! Hans!" Sora stood between the two of them. "You don't need to do this! She's lost enough, you don't need to kill her!"

Hans stood there, studying him with a gaze colder than the blizzard winds that had been blowing moments before. Three seconds too late did Sora realize that the wolf in sheep's clothing didn't refer to the Queen.

It was the prince before him.

"No," Prince Hans decided, "I can save the day without your help."

A dark aura appeared around the man, the smoke curled and gathered above him, creating a familiar doorway of darkness. In the span of seconds, the Frost Golem appeared above Hans, grabbed Sora in its claws, and threw him across the fjord.

Sora recovered and landed on his feet. He couldn't believe he had just been played.

_Again!_

Sora raised his keyblade and fired a barrage of spells at the monster.

"_Sparkga_! _Tornado! Triple_ _Firaga_!"

All these attacks hit the Frost Golem, but they apparently did little more than tickle it. Its armor was like concrete. All the while, Hans approached Elsa with his sword in hand. Sora continued desperately.

"_Ballonga_! _Thunder_ _Raid_!"

No effect, and now Hans had the sword raised above his head, ready to strike down a defenseless Elsa.

Sora made a mad dash under the Golem, but the beast was too quick. The Golem slammed its hand on top of him, pinning him to the ground. Sora desperately waved his keyblade behind him, trying to get the monster off his back, but it was useless. All he could now was watch helplessly as Hans killed his friend.

Then he watched as Anna, with white hair and blue fingers stepped between them to protect her sister. She turned into a statue of ice at the perfect moment, catching Hans' blade and shattering it. The act caused a rippling magic throughout the area, and weakened the Frost Golem holding Sora down.

Sora didn't have time to grieve. He pulled himself up and turned to the creature. The ice on its body was cracked all over. The wings on its back were falling apart, and it was struggling to stay aloft.

Sora merged his power with his Dream Eater companions. The result was summoning something of a meteor down on the monster, striking it in the chest and shattering it completely. The pieces faded into smoking shadows, and Sora stood over it. He couldn't even be relieved. He let his guard down, and acted without thinking. He trusted Hans, and he turned out to be the traitor.

He went back to Elsa, who was hugging her now frozen sister. Olaf and another man were present too, though he didn't know his name. It doesn't matter. So far as he could tell, this day was a lost.

He turned to Hans, who seemed to be knocked out in all of this. Sora strode over to him and jerked him up by his collar.

"Why?!" he yelled at him. "Why would you do this?!"

He groaned, then he muttered a response.

"Power," he answered, "Only thing that…"

He drifted back into unconsciousness. Sora summoned his keyblade and raised it above his head.

He wanted to strike him. He wanted to do it so much. One hit, at this state, and he would fall.

To darkness.

Someone grabbed his hand. "Kid."

Sora turned to see a blond haired young man that towered over him. He looked on the verge of breaking down himself.

"That's not going to help," he told him.

Sora nodded, ashamed of himself. He dismissed his weapon and dropped the Prince.

"I know," Sora remembered, "I know."

"Sora?" said the little snowman, "Look."

Then, something impossible happened. Anna became unfrozen. She was alive. Elsa realized that love, the love she felt for her sister, and her people was the key to her power. She thawed the fjord, and Sora suddenly found himself and the others on one of the ships in the harbor, conveniently enough.

Anna punched Hans in the face, and he fell into the water below. Elsa turned to Sora.

"Elsa," he said, "Your Majesty, I'm..."

"It's alright, Sora," the Queen waved her hand. "The Prince had us all fooled."

"It's just..." Sora tried to explain, "I followed what I thought was right, but it backfired. How am I supposed to trust my own judgment after something like this?"

Elsa took his hand with both of hers and held it gingerly. She looked into his eyes and said, "Don't let this one mistake define you. No one can lock away their heart forever. Keep trusting people, but choose them wisely. Never be afraid to give out your heart to others. People like us have to be bold. I understand that now."

She turned back to her sister and hugged her tightly once more. And Sora was left to think on her words.

"Keep trusting people," Sora repeated, "and keep being bold. I guess I'll just have to trust my heart."

Then Sora looked over to the edge of the boat they were on. Out over the waters was a shining light: a keyhole.

Sora summoned his keyblade and the light shot out and caused a shattering sound to occur. The world was fine now, and it will be waking up soon.


	8. Chapter 8

Riku had run all the way down the mountain, using the _flowmotion_ magic on the trees to hasten his decent without tiring himself out. The trolls informed him of the situation. Anna's heart was frozen, and if she didn't hurry to find an act of true love, she will freeze to solid ice.

Riku could only hope he made it down in time to help them. As he remembered what the trolls told him, he could only hear the echoes of his first misadventure.

A girl losing her heart.

A young man working to save her.

And the one hero who could possibly fix it all.

Riku pushed the thoughts out of his head.

"Your mistakes are yours, and yours alone," he told himself, "Now you're atoning for them."

"Hey Riku!"

Riku was startled by the sudden outburst. It was Olaf, sliding through the woods and using snow banks as ramps to jump up in the air next to him.

Riku landed back on the ground and Olaf skidded up to him.

"I heard what happened," Riku told the snowman, "How can I help?"

"Kristoff went ahead," Olaf informed him, "I think they're at the castle."

"Lead the way," Riku ordered.

They soon reached the castle as the storm above only grew bigger. Riku could smell its magic, this has to be for Anna.

They snuck their way through the castle, hardly a soul in sight. The soldiers must be helping the townsfolk prepare for the blizzard. Anyone could feel it coming.

Olaf picked a door at random and tried to open it. It was locked, but they heard a small voice on the other side.

"..._help_..."

The two looked at each other in astonishment. Was that Anna's voice?

Riku tapped the door with his keyblade and threw it open. There they found the poor girl on the floor, trying desperately to reach the door.

Riku went to her side. She was ice cold, and her hair was completely white.

Olaf grabbed a blanket while Riku cast a spell at the fireplace to light it. They pulled her to the fireplace to try and get her warm.

"Anna, where's Hans? What happened to your kiss?" Olaf asked.

"I w-was wrong about Hans," she answered, ashamed. "I-It wasn't true love."

"But..." Olaf sounded distressed, "We came all this way..."

"You ha-have to leave," Anna warned, "Both of you. It's not s-safe here."

"I am not leaving until we find a way to save you!" Olaf stubbornly crossed his little stick arms.

"Neither will I," Riku vowed, "There has to be a way to help. The trolls said an act of true love will break the curse."

"I don't know what love is anymore," Anna seemed to shrink inside her blanket.

"Oh, well sure you do," Olaf held her by her shoulders, "Love is putting someone before you."

Riku felt like there was a share of glass digging its way into his soul. "Even if they don't feel that way about you," he whispered.

Olaf continued, "Oh! Like what Kristoff did! He ran you back here as fast as he could."

Riku remembered that, even with his _flowmotion_ magic, he still couldn't catch up to the ice seller. He must have been booking it down the mountain by the time Riku left the trolls.

Anna blinked for a second. "Kristoff...loves me?"

Olaf looked back at Riku and he shrugged. "That's a pretty safe bet." He answered.

Suddenly the window blew open and Anna shivered. Olaf scrambled over the couch, knocking over some chess pieces on a table to quickly close the window. He paused and squinted outside.

"It's him!" He exclaimed, "He's coming back!"

"He must have noticed the storm overhead," Riku stated. "C'mon Anna, we'll get you to him safely."

Anna had her arm draped over Riku's shoulders as she half carried to out of the room. Suddenly a pack of Dream Eaters appeared in the hallway to his right.

"We don't have time for this!" Riku complained.

Olaf took Anna by the hand and led her away from the fighting. Riku covered their backs and cleared their path the best he could. Thankfully, they made it outside the castle. Unfortunately, outside was practically a blizzard.

"Riku," Anna said quietly, "Need you to find Kristoff. Help him get through..."

She stumbled forward. Riku understood.

"Be right back," he promised.

He ran into the blizzard, and it feels like as soon as Anna and Olaf were out of sight that he was ambushed again. This time, with a magical barrier.

"Oh, you must be joking," Riku silently cursed. He _really_ didn't have time for this.

He fought wave after wave of enemies. Dream Eaters of every shape and size charged him. There were even some he hadn't seen before. It was the biggest collection of Dream Eaters in the entirety of this adventure, and they all had to appear at this crucial moment. He had to use his last elixir, and his nifty _Curaga_ spell several times before it was over.

The last wave of Dream Eaters paused before attacking, and after a moment, they disappeared. The barrier fell, and Riku was free to run around in the blizzard again.

"What?" Riku wondered, "Why didn't they-?"

Suddenly a wave pulsed through the air, freezing the blizzard itself in its tracks. Riku looked around, and signed in relief. Anna and Kristoff where there. Just several feet from each other. Olaf was nowhere to be seen, undoubtedly blown away by the blizzard, and Anna looked almost too weak to stand. If Kristoff ran, he could get to her before the curse takes effect.

Kristoff pushed himself into a full sprint, clearly understanding the imminent danger present.

Anna moved towards him, but she stopped. She looked over, and Riku saw it too. A red headed noble, the Hans Anna had referred to earlier, was standing over Queen Elsa with a sword ready.

Riku was too far away, there was nothing he could do. Before he knew it, Anna had stepped between the attacker and her sister, and froze to solid ice.

Horror settled in Riku's veins. He knew he felt this before, twice over. The first was when he realized that he sold his soul to the devil, and he had to watch as Ansem controlled his body. The second time...

He couldn't remember... Roxas was there and...

He couldn't remember. All he knew was that he failed a friend the day he fought Roxas

And now this. He failed the daughters of Arendelle.

But he got lucky.

Anna came back to life in Elsa's embrace. Elsa learned the secret to her power, and cleared the snow in ice out of her kingdom. Anna hugged Elsa closely enjoying their embrace.

"No..."

The five of them turned to a returning Hans. Anna cleared her throat and approached him.

"Your heart was frozen!" Hans protested.

"The only frozen heart around here is yours." Anna stated, then punched him in the face so suddenly that it made Riku flinch.

Elsa and Anna hugged it out once more, and all was well.

Until Riku heard _his_ voice.

"How touching."

Riku turned and saw Ansem on deck with the rest of them like he'd been there all along. "Do you think your own darkness will melt away like her curse, boy? You forfeited your heart long ago, along with so many others. Do you think your friends will be as forgiving?"

Riku sighed. "Y'know, I'm not so sure. Even if they never will forgive me for all I've done, I'll just keep on doing what I know is right. I'll just have to hope that's enough."

Ansem chuckled in amusement. "How naïve. You will learn, one way or the other."

He disappeared in darkness. And Riku faced the united family once more.

Anna approached him and gave him a hug for comfort.

"Thank you, Riku," she said, "For everything."

"I'm glad I could help, Princess." He bowed to Elsa. "Your Majesty."

"Riku," Anna added, "Love has a lot of funny shapes."

Riku blinked. "I'm…sorry?"

"I mean," she waved her hands in front of her, "There's more than one kind of love, so… even if someone doesn't like you one way, doesn't mean they don't care for you at all. Um, does that make any sense?"

Riku stared at her, but smiled and nodded his head. "It does. Thank you Anna, I think I needed to hear that."

Riku spotted a light in the distance, and recognized the keyhole in the air. He said his goodbyes, and unlocked the world from slumber. It should wake up along with the others, and the test should be done. Now all this madness will come to an end, and the two keyblade wielders will receive the mark of mastery.

_Well_, Riku thought, _Sora will. At least._

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**_Thank you for the support and views, and if you're feeling all warm and fuzzy, please leave a review. And let me know if there are any other Disney owned worlds Sora and Riku should visit. _**

**_Until next time. _**


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